OWC have issued me with an RMA. They say that the miniStack should cold boot just like my other external firewire drive does and that there appears to be a problem with the auto powerup feature on my miniStack. I'll be sending it back on Monday.

OWC have issued me with an RMA. They say that the miniStack should cold boot just like my other external firewire drive does and that there appears to be a problem with the auto powerup feature on my miniStack. I'll be sending it back on Monday.

I had a bizarre problem with my unit that, luckily, no one else has mentioned at this time-- my power switch did not move! Initially, it appeared to be blocked by the plastic case, but I later discovered that it was the switch itself. So, I never even got to the point where I was experiencing all the other issues and I'm glad I didn't have to.

Since OWC does not currently offer a competing product, I first asked if they could special order one for me (the miniMate) as a replacement but they said this was not doable, so I requested a refund. I was concerned about going this route because of their restock fees, but they were waived this time around.

My opinion is that the miniStack/macpower M9 is just a lousy design. The option to purchase it without a hard drive (its strongest selling point) does not justify the potential problems. In my view, any of the aluminum case-based solutions are a far better match for the Mac Mini. They're not without their share of problems, but in my experience, I only have ONE with my miniMate and I'm not even sure it is the enclosure that is to blame. See this thread for details:

OWC have issued me with an RMA. They say that the miniStack should cold boot just like my other external firewire drive does and that there appears to be a problem with the auto powerup feature on my miniStack. I'll be sending it back on Monday.

A stuck switch is a QA problem (which the manufacturer should have caught) but not necessarily lousy design.
If you want to talk poor design, I have a LaCie mini with an extremely small switch that is very delicate and hard to access. It only works sometimes and is pushing back into the case. I can tell you from owning both that the switch on the M9/miniStack is definitely more substantial and easier to use than that on the LaCie._________________2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM
miniStack 500GB
Dell 1905FP
Logitech Wave Cordless Desktop

I was taking the other customer complaints in account when I said that. Even if the switch was working, I believe the electronic switch found in the miniMate's design is much better. It uses a similar switch to that of the Mac Mini and I have no problem with its functionality or getting access to it.

greg wrote:

jdryyz wrote:

my power switch did not move!

Quote:

My opinion is that the miniStack/macpower M9 is just a lousy design.

A stuck switch is a QA problem (which the manufacturer should have caught) but not necessarily lousy design.
If you want to talk poor design, I have a LaCie mini with an extremely small switch that is very delicate and hard to access. It only works sometimes and is pushing back into the case. I can tell you from owning both that the switch on the M9/miniStack is definitely more substantial and easier to use than that on the LaCie.

Hello everybody!
This is my first post on this forum. I have been following the add-on drive discussions with great interest.
If I have understod it corectly the Lacie do not have a fan or usb/firewire hub. Where as the ministack has them both and is better cooled than the Lacie through a better heatsink.
Would it be madness to just disconect the fan on the ministack? It would certanly eliminate the disturbing sound, but would it also eliminate the drive?
My piont beeing that the Ministack should have the same or better chance of cooling of a hot drive (atleast with rubber feet mounted).
Any thoughts?

Hello everybody!
This is my first post on this forum. I have been following the add-on drive discussions with great interest.
If I have understod it corectly the Lacie do not have a fan or usb/firewire hub. Where as the ministack has them both and is better cooled than the Lacie through a better heatsink.
Would it be madness to just disconect the fan on the ministack? It would certanly eliminate the disturbing sound, but would it also eliminate the drive?
My piont beeing that the Ministack should have the same or better chance of cooling of a hot drive (atleast with rubber feet mounted).
Any thoughts?

It would be madness. The Lacie is using better heatsinks to cool the drive. From what I have seen they are using heatpipes which channel the heat away from the drive.

At this point I would say the LaCie and the Belkin FireWire/USB hub would be a good combo._________________1.42Ghz
1GB RAM
200GB FW HDD (Boot drive)
80GB HDD
External DVD burner
45.23 Xbench 1.2 average
FireWire Boot Guide

Hello everybody!
Would it be madness to just disconect the fan on the ministack? It would certanly eliminate the disturbing sound, but would it also eliminate the drive?

Hello, Relayer and welcome to the forums.
I recently moved the miniStack fan temperature probe from the top of my drive to the side. With the probe no longer up against the top of the unit and directly underneath the mini, fan activity has reduced significantly. According to my external thermometer, the average drive temperature has only risen a couple degrees and is still running cooler than the mini's internal. I don't think disconnecting the fan altogether is a good idea. By the way, I don't find the sound of the fan disturbing. However, the sound of a drive dying...thats kind of disturbing._________________2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM
miniStack 500GB
Dell 1905FP
Logitech Wave Cordless Desktop